The Savvy Age on Review This!

Hello!

My name is Tracey aka The Savvy Age online. The Savvy Age is my online name/brand/moniker.

I am excited to accept the invitation by Review This! to become the newest contributor. I have always admired the variety of well written articles on the site and am honored to become a member of a talented team.

I enjoy writing about ... everything!  As reflective of life I write about a variety of diverse topics and particularly enjoy writing about food, crafts, DIY projects, pets and of course chocolate!

My writing career past and present includes: content writing, research, SEO articles, technical writing, newsletters, nonfiction writing and grant writing.

Where I Write?

• I write and manage the The Savvy Age which is a lifestyle site with an emphasis on: recipes, food, crafts, pets, health, family life and an occasional tried and true DIY for your home and life.
• I also write and manage "LoveLaughGift" a site to find unique gift ideas for every occasion! Handmade and homemade are always gifts and gift ideas I like to feature along with niche gift ideas.
• The Low Oxalate Cookbook was recently published as an eBook and the paperback edition is in process.
• Burdens As Blessings is an eBook on caregiving which is currently being updated for 2018.

Reviews

As a frequent online buyer I rely heavily on consumer reviews for any product I am considering to purchase and I enjoy writing reviews as well. Real life information is so much more valuable than the description of a product. Does a product or service deliver as promised? An answer we all like to know prior to purchasing. I am thrilled with the opportunity to participate in Review This! and add my experiences.

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The Savvy Age

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and I look forward to visiting you online! - Tracey

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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The Open House Movie Review (2018)

If you love a horror movie, the kind that will invade your dreams with nightmares, The Open House is for you. 

I know we have readers who enjoy safely having their wits scared out of them.  To be honest, I am not that person.   But, I did watch this movie from beginning to end.  I selected The Open House myself believing it would be a great mystery movie.  I expected suspense, but I was certainly in for quite a shock.  Not to mention the days of terror filled moments that followed.   I watched it nearly a week ago, and I still can't look into a dark room without feeling the chills run down my spine.  And, don't even suggest I take a shower when I am alone in the house.  Trust me!   If my shower water suddenly turns cold, I am not going to investigate.   I am locking myself in the bathroom with all the lights on until the sun rises the next day. 

Now, I hope if you decide to watch The Open House, you will be better prepared than I was for the movie.

The Open House Movie Synopsis 

The movie begins with a happy couple and their Olympic hopeful son, Logan.  It is very clear the parents support their only child's dream.  However, the movie turns tragic when Logan's father is hit by a car when he is crossing the street.  Logan helplessly witnesses his father's death. Those are images that will haunt him for the rest of his life.

Logan and his mother, Naomi,  find themselves thrown into a desperate financial situation.  They are forced to move from their home.  It seems fortunate that Naomi's sister has a furnished house in the mountains that is for sale.  She offers to let them stay there for free noting that the mansion is better lived in than left vacant and they can look after the house for her.  The only consideration is that she needs them to vacate the house every Sunday so the real estate agent can host an open house.  A mere inconvenience when you get to live free right?  I am certain Naomi and Logan would never have considered moving into that house, whether it was free or not, if they had any idea what would happen to them there.

Who checks the house carefully after an open house?  Do you believe the realtor has kept a close eye on everyone who visits your home during an open house?  I would certainly hope so.  But, what if there are several people visiting the open house?  Or, if someone comes through the back door instead of the front door and the realtor never even sees them?  What if you are not really familiar with the house yourself?  Would you feel comfortable laying down to sleep in an unfamiliar home after an open house?  I admit, I never really thought about it before.  We see open house signs in surrounding neighborhoods weekly.  It is a commonplace event.

One thing that is now for sure, if I ever decide to sell our house, we will NOT host an open house! 

Where to Watch The Open House (2018) by Netflix 

Currently, the movie is only available on Netflix.   A subscription to Netflix is required to view their movies.  Normally, Netflix will make their movies available to purchase on DVD after a year or two.  Unfortunately, when I checked recently (Sept 2021), The Open House is still not available on DVD.      

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The Open House Movie Review (2018) Written by:

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The Child Finder - A Book Review

The Child Finder

This is something I know:  No matter how far you have run, no matter how long you have been lost, it is never too late to be found.

What can desperate parents do when their worst nightmare comes true?  Where do they turn when their child has gone missing and all hope seems lost?  In The Child Finder, by Rene Denfeld, they turn to Naomi, a woman who has known the raw reality of what it is to be lost, and what it takes to be found.

Three years ago, on what should have been a joyous holiday excursion, five-year-old Madison Culver went missing while her family was seeking the perfect Christmas tree.  Countless search and rescue missions in Oregon’s Skookum National Forest turned up no clue of Madison’s fate.  She seemingly disappeared without a trace.

Not wanting to give up on finding their daughter, and clinging to the barest hope that she might still be alive, the Culvers' turn to Naomi, a former lost child with a reputation for finding the unfindable.  Having survived her own childhood abduction, Naomi will stop at nothing to follow the instincts and intuition born of her still mysterious past.

Where are you, Madison Culver?  Flying with the angels, a silver speck on a wing?  Are you dreaming, buried under snow?  Or—is it possible—you are still alive?

The search for Madison is, at the same time, the search for something Naomi senses she lost while being found.  Will the revelation of what really happened to Madison, and Naomi, be a becoming, or an undoing?  Are buried secrets best left alone, or will their unveiling allow Naomi to finally open herself up to all that has been missing in her life?

The Child Finder is breathtaking.  This novel's interwoven themes of resilience, love, hope, despair, loss, fear, and redemption will stay with you long after you read the very last sentence of this book.  Highly recommended.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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The Piano Maker Book Review

Austrian Kurt Palka’s THE PIANO MAKER is a fictional adventure story with a strong female lead and, true to the title, it is actually about the world of the piano. It is the story of one woman’s life journey from France in the time of the First World War to Canada in the 1930s. Given exceptional training as a child and a young woman as both a pianist and as a piano maker for the family firm, she loses everything during the war and eventually winds up in a small town on the French Canadian shore.

When she arrives, she appears in good clothing and with a nice car but everything that she owns, besides her skills related to the piano, is packed in that car. Her pianist skills, however, are enough for the local church to take her in as a pianist and choir conductor without even checking her references and she is thrilled to have found a new and simple life. Unfortunately, the years in between her time in France and this town contain a secret that she is unable to be rid of.

The story flips back and forth between the time of her new life and the times that have passed. It shares the piano training she received as a young woman and her struggles with that business during war time; the love of a solider and the subsequent loss of that man; another man who rescues her when she needs help supporting both herself and her daughter. The journey includes time spent searching for treasures of different sorts in Indochina and Canada. It includes some uncomfortable situations as the woman recalls at trial her struggle for survival in the frozen Canadian north.

The Piano Maker is RECOMMENDED by me. As a Canadian, I loved that it is partially set in Canada. Anyone with an interest in pianos might enjoy the references to piano playing and piano making that are included in this book. As well, those from the Maritimes and those who enjoy war-time fiction might want to pick up this book.

Amazon says that readers who enjoy The Piano Maker will also like The Imposter Bride by Nancy Richler, The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway and Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay. I have not read the first two but remember loving Sarah’s Key.

For those looking for piano-themed fiction, it turns out that there are an endless variety of books available. You might enjoy The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason (a Nobel prize winner), The Piano (which is also a movie) by Jane Campion or The Piano Shop on the Left Bank (which is set in Paris) by Thad Carhart’s. Apparently, books with the word piano in the title are a bit trendy though apparently not all include very much about the world of the piano. You can see Amazon’s collection of Piano fiction here.

You can read more about Kurt Palka’s The Piano Maker or buy it from Amazon here.

Have you read The Piano Maker or maybe any of the related books? What did you think?

See you at
the book store!

Brenda

Quick Links:

Buy The Piano Maker on Amazon.

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Cree Blue Psychic Eye Mystery Series Reviewed

Cozy Mystery Series With A Paranormal Flair

Psychic Image courtesy of Pixabay.com

Recently I began a mystery series: the Cree Blue Psychic Eye Mystery books. I would like to give you a little review this morning. Most of our regular readers are aware that I love a good mystery book and that I am partial to the Cozy Mystery genre. I began writing my own cozy series last year so I am a bit partial to the genre.

This series caught my eye as I scrolled through my choices of options for a new series to read. First of all it is a set of cozy mysteries so, it won't be too graphic on the murder details and then the touch of paranormal intrigued my brain. The thought of a sleuth that had psychic abilities seemed interesting and just a tad different. I like different!

Well, I am here to tell you that I am not disappointed in clicking the buy it button for the first book! Kate Allenton, the author, has not made me regret my choice. Her premise for the setting and characters are fun to read. Cree Blue is witty, smart and a little bit on the sassy side. She is a modern southern belle who just happens to have the ability to "see things" whether she wants to or not. She would also just as soon that people not know about her gifts. She uses her unusual ability to see beyond the veil to help solve cold case crimes, not for money or fame but because she wants to help the victims and to get the justice their lives deserved.

Cree Blue Psychic Eye Book 1

Cree Blue has made me laugh several times with her witty comebacks and her descriptions of people and events. There were also times I found myself thinking, "You go, girl!". She is quite an enjoyable little sleuth to get to know as I turn the pages.

Because these are cozies there are not things within the plot that are super gory, no frightening spirits or explicit sex scenes. The couple of ghosts that show up in the first book are friendly and helpful sorts. They won't make you scream and throw down your book! There is a bit of a romantic attraction but not in a way that will make your cheeks turn scarlet.

If you like a well written mystery, the kind that keeps you guessing; then I think you will enjoy the Cree Blue Psychic Eye series as much as I am. They are not tomes so they don't take an extremely long time to read. I think that if you give the first book a chance, you too will become a fan of this female sleuth who has psychic abilities.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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